That's when the Griz last played the Houston Rockets in the Toyota Center just like they will tonight at 7 p.m.

It was a controversial night to say the least.

The Griz lost the game, 100-92, and their cool afterwards because Zach Randolph ripped the officials and then received a $25,000 fine for doing so. Randolph was fuming because Rockets guard James Harden went 22 for 25 from the free throw line. Harden finished with 27 points despite connecting on just two field goals.

"We felt we should have won that game," Randolph said. "We're going to come out and compete. They've been playing good basketball but we have been too. We're ready."

Memphis led by 11 points midway through the third quarter and Houston center Dwight Howard was on the bench with five fouls in that game. The Griz made their only appearance on TNT this season and left Houston with today's date circled on the schedule.

"It was tough to lose that game in Houston," point guard Mike Conley said. "We feel like if we play the right play and play hard enough we can beat the good teams. We consider Houston one of those good teams."

The Griz will also have back-to-back shots at grabbing their first Southwest Division win. They will host the Rockets in FedExForum on Saturday for a rare home-and-home series.

Every game day we'll clue you in on a few buzzy items dealing with the Griz and their opponent.

Here are "3 Things to Know for Your Griz Day."

1. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, this will mark just the second time since the Grizzlies have resided in Memphis that the franchise will play the same opponent on back-to-back nights. The last time this happened was a home-and-home series with Dallas from Nov. 17-18, 2006. The weekend series will close out the regular-season series with Houston.

2. Randolph needs just one more double-double to tie Pau Gasol (189) for the franchise record. This game marks Randolph's 299th game with the Grizzlies. Pau Gasol played in 476. Only Golden State forward David Lee (79) has more double-doubles than Howard (76) and Randolph (70) since the start of last season.

3. The Griz might run into a more motivated Dwight Howard. Minnesota's Kevin Love passed Howard in the final days of voting and will start in the frontcourt for the Western Conference during the NBA All-Star game the Feb. 16 game in New Orleans.

If that isn't enough, Howard played 27 minutes and had five turnovers in his first meeting with the Griz. He had five fouls and two points in 18 minutes during the second meeting. However, the 6-11 center has posted three consecutive 20-point, 10-rebound performances and is averaging 23.3 points on 69.2 percent shooting, and 13 rebounds over his last three outings.

There you go. A sample of what you need to know to get an early start on your Griz day.